FLW League Finals Visits Bay de Noc
Category: Tournament
Sep 7th, 2006 by OutdoorsFIRST
Modified Sep 7th, 2006 at 12:00 AM
ESCANABA, Mich. (Aug. 24, 2006) – The Wal-Mart FLW Walleye League will stage its 2006 League Finals on the waters of Bays de Noc and Lake Michigan in Escanaba, Mich., Sept. 7-9. The FLW Walleye League Finals pits top weekend walleye anglers from three divisions – Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin – against each other, with Boater Division competitors casting for a top award of a Ranger 621 boat equipped with a Minn Kota trolling motor, Lowrance electronics, EverStart batteries and powered by an Evinrude outboard valued at $45,000. The second place boater will receive a Polar Kraft V1910 Pro powered by Yamaha, and Co-angler Division competitors are hunting for a top award of a G3 V185F powered by Yamaha. One hundred and five anglers will compete in each division. Anglers will take off from Escanaba Harbor at 7 each morning. Thursday’s and Friday’s weigh-ins will also be held at the marina, which is located at Loren W. Jenkins Memorial Drive in Escanaba beginning at 3 p.m. Saturday’s weigh-in moves to the Wal-Mart store located at 601 North Lincoln in Escanaba beginning at 4 p.m. The community is invited to attend the free takeoff and weigh-in festivities. Boaters and co-anglers are randomly paired each day of the event and fish for a combined boat weight that carries over from day to day in their respective divisions. Boaters compete against other boaters, and co-anglers compete against other co-anglers. The winners are determined by the heaviest three-day accumulated weight, with only the top 15 boaters and co-anglers fishing on day three. “Wal-Mart FLW Walleye League anglers represent the next generation of fishing superstars,” said FLW Outdoors Director of Walleye Operations Sonny Reynolds. “Qualifying for the Finals is extremely difficult. The anglers competing in Escanaba represent some of the best in the sport in their own right and many are ready to step up to the Walleye FLW Tour.” Anglers qualified for the FLW Walleye League Finals by finishing in the top 35 in their respective divisions through three one-day tournaments and a two-day Super Tournament. Every angler who received weight credit earned points, with 100 points awarded to the winner, 99 for second, 98 for third, and so on in each qualifier, except for Super Tournaments, which awarded 150 points to the winner, 149 for second, 148 for third, and so on. These points determined angler standings. The Bays de Noc Convention and Visitors Bureau is hosting the event. For more information, call 800.533.4386. The Wal-Mart FLW Walleye League was created to provide the grassroots walleye angler a chance to compete in professionally administered, close-to-home tournaments with lucrative cash awards. Named after the legendary founder of Ranger Boats, Forrest L. Wood, FLW Outdoors administers the Wal-Mart FLW Tour, Wal-Mart FLW Series, Stren Series, Wal-Mart Bass Fishing League, Wal-Mart Texas Tournament Trail presented by Abu Garcia, Stratos Owners’ Tournament Trail, Wal-Mart FLW Walleye Tour, Wal-Mart FLW Walleye League, Wal-Mart FLW Kingfish Tour, Wal-Mart FLW Kingfish Series, Wal-Mart FLW Redfish Series and Wal-Mart FLW Striper Series. These circuits offer combined purses exceeding $37.9 million through 249 events in 2006. For more information about FLW Outdoors and its tournament programs, visit FLWOutdoors.com or call (270) 252-1000. Wal-Mart and many of America’s largest and most respected companies support FLW Outdoors and its tournament trails. Wal-Mart signed on as an FLW Outdoors sponsor in 1997 and today is the world’s leading supporter of tournament fishing. For more information about Wal-Mart, visit Wal-Mart.com.